


Outlaws, In-laws, Etc.

by sanctuary_for_all



Series: Partners [15]
Category: Hawaii Five-0 (2010)
Genre: Angst, Established Relationship, Family, Feels, Fix-It, Humor, I Hate Sad Danny, M/M, Schmoop
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2014-10-18
Updated: 2017-11-08
Packaged: 2018-02-21 15:02:52
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 9
Words: 9,898
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2472527
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/sanctuary_for_all/pseuds/sanctuary_for_all
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Matt pops back up.</p><p>(In a much less awful, depressing way than on the show).</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> The last thing in the world I wanted to do was write this fic. But Danny's face in 5x03 haunts me, and I needed actual written confirmation that it all happened a different way in my reality.
> 
> *Note: Chapter 1 has been edited because I hadn't re-watched Matty's season 1 episode when I wrote it. Turns out the boy is slightly less of a heartless s.o.b. than I remembered.

The sound of someone knocking on his front door made Steve open his eyes.

Confused, he checked the time – 3 a.m. – then his phone to see if he'd missed a call. He hadn't, which meant that it wasn't a case or the more traditional category of emergencies. If it was one of the _other_ kind of emergencies – it worried him, occasionally, that he even had that category – there would probably be more gunfire. His mother – the main reason he had that category – would have bypassed the security system and picked the lock. Someone who wanted to kill them would have shot their way inside.

Honestly, Steve wasn't sure what that left.

The knock came again, and he carefully extricated himself from Danny's arms and got out of bed. Pulling on a shirt, he grabbed his gun from the bedside holster and went to check on their unexpected guest.

Danny shifted, making a displeased sound as his eyes half opened. "Babe?" he murmured, clearly not really awake yet.

"Just need to check something out," he murmured, bending over to press a kiss against Danny's cheek. "Go back to sleep. I'll be back in a second."

Steve carefully made his way down the stairs, positioning himself so he couldn't be seen through the small window set in the doorway. The third knock came, louder this time, as the person on the other side peered through the window as if checking to see if there was anyone inside.

Steve, getting a good look at his face for the first time, froze. He'd only seen him in person during that one dinner a few years ago, and after that only in Danny and Grace's pictures, but that didn't matter. He'd know Matt Williams anywhere.

Moving more quickly now, he positioned himself next to the door so he could check to see if Matt was alone without being seen. Only then did he open it, yanking the other man inside. "I should have you arrested right now," he snapped, whispering in the hopes that they wouldn't wake Danny up. "Do you have any idea what you put your brother through?"

Matt opened his mouth, clearly ready to spin a story again, then closed it and peered at Steve with a suddenly curious expression. "That's—" At Steve's angry shushing motion, he dropped to a whisper himself. "Not that I know you that well, but that's really not what I thought you were going to say. I thought 'fugitive,' 'danger' or even 'what the hell are you doing at my house?' would come into it first."

"I know what you're doing at my house." Steve's jaw tightened, grateful that Grace was at her mother's for the week. "You're in trouble, and you're looking for Danny to get you out of it."

Matt, surprisingly, had the grace to look embarrassed for a second. "Sorry about that. But I was actually hoping to avoid my brother if at all—"

Steve folded his arms across his chest. "Not sure what the 'hello' will be like after you skipped town and practically ordered your brother to shoot you?"

Matt stopped again, brow lowering as he watched Steve with an intent look. "You're really stuck on that, aren't you? Listen, it's not a big deal. It's just you're the only one I could find in the phone book, and if you'd be willing to help me out then I might not even need to—"

"Might not even need to do what, Matty?"

Matt flinched at the sound of his brother's voice, and Steve turned to watch Danny come down the stairs looking more furious than he'd ever seen him. There was also relief there, swimming just beneath the surface, at finding out that the family member who'd disappeared was still very much alive.

It was one more thing they understood about each other without needing to talk about it.

Matt collected himself surprisingly quickly as Danny came down the stairs. "Listen, I know you're still pissed at me about the whole 'skipping town' thing, but I swear I never meant to bother you with this in the first place. I really just needed to borrow some tools from your partner over here, then I'll be out of—"

The rest of the sentence cut off when Danny punched him in the jaw, hard enough to drop him for a moment. " _That's_ for last time," Danny growled, letting Matt stagger back to his feet. "Do not _ever_ pull that kind of shit with me again, do you understand me?"

Matt opened his mouth, clearly ready to start spinning a story, but nothing came out. He looked stunned, and Steve couldn't imagine it was because of the punch. Surely the man had to have been expecting something along those lines.

Maybe it was the "again," and the second chance it implied.

Finally, he closed his mouth and nodded. "Understood," he said quietly.

"Good," Danny snapped, still sounding furious. He then immediately pulled Matt into a fierce hug.

Matt hugged him back. "I need your help."

Danny sighed. "Big surprise."


	2. Chapter 2

Danny felt like he couldn't breathe, though he'd be damned if he'd show it. He'd never let himself hope for a moment like this, the chance to see his brother again alive and as well as could possibly be expected when you'd skipped town just ahead of the FBI. The chance to save his brother before he slipped away again.

Not that he wanted the help, apparently.

_I swear I never meant to bother you with this in the first place...._

Shoving the hurt down deep enough that it wouldn't get in the way of anything else, Danny broke the hug only far enough to corral Matty over the couch and make him sit. Surprisingly, Matt went, giving Danny a side-eye that made it clear that he knew exactly what his big brother was doing but was choosing to humor him.

Danny's chest squeezed tight. Damn it, he'd missed him.

He looked up at Steve, who was still doing his arms-folded "mafia bodyguard" pose that meant he was happy to hang back until Danny needed him to punch something. Danny gave him a small nod, and an eye thing like he hoped like hell communicated "Thank you for being here," and Steve gave him a little smile and dropped down into the armchair like the 12-year-old he not-so-secretly was. Message received.

Matt looked back and forth between them, brow furrowed as if he knew there was something he was missing, but when he opened his mouth to say something Danny cut him off. “Spill, Matty. If we’re going to get you out of this, we need to know the whole story – who’s chasing you, why they’re chasing you, and whether we should be expecting people with guns tonight, or sometime in the next few days.”

Matt hesitated, clearly wrestling with something. “Danny, listen, I’m not expecting you to fix all of this. I just need—“

Frustration and fear tangled together in his chest. “What about what I need?” Danny couldn’t stop himself from shouting, only one of a dozen different reasons he was grateful Grace was at Rachel’s for the week. The emotion in his voice, everything he couldn’t quite swallow back down, was far more dangerous. “How about we think about that for five seconds?”

Matt’s jaw tightened as he pushed himself to his feet, his expression as serious as it had been before he’d stepped into that damned plane. “What you need is to not have to worry that the Columbians are going to come after you for harboring me. It’s dangerous enough that—“

“You think I care?” Danny was at full volume now, as close to being nose-to-nose with Matt as their respective heights would allow. “Having people try to kill me is my day job! But I am _sick_ of being scared for you all the time, out there in the middle of nowhere where there is nothing I can do to protect you! What I _need_ is to not have to worry about someone eventually shipping my little brother’s body back to me in an oil drum!”

There was a moment of absolute silence while the two brothers glared at each other, then Matt sat back down on the couch and scrubbed his face with his hands. “I didn’t want you to have to save me from this, too,” he said quietly.

Danny sighed, sitting down next to him. “I’m your big brother, you asshole. Saving you is my _job_.” He put a hand on Matt’s leg. “Now tell us everything. How did the Colombians finally find you?”

Matt dropped his hands, eyes fixed on a spot in the middle of the floor in front of him. “They always knew where I was. I knew enough to be able to disappear from the FBI, but not an international drug ring. I told them we couldn’t do the deal in Hawaii because the FBI was following me, but that didn’t mean I could back out of it.” He hesitated, fingers flexing, then glanced back at Danny. “If I’d let you talk me off the plane that night, the Colombians would have come for us both. I had to make sure I was the only one they were focusing on.”

Danny’s chest squeezed tight. “You’re still an asshole,” he murmured, voice rough.

The corner of Matt’s mouth flickered up for just a second. “So I’ve been told.” Then it disappeared as he looked away again. “That’s what I’ve been doing for the last few years – being the Columbian’s money man. Technically, I work for Pedro Fuentes, but he mostly handles the intimidation and bribes. I’m the one that makes everything look legal.”

Steve leaned forward, expression as intent as if they were in the middle of a case. “If the arrangement was working for them, why are they coming after you now?”

Danny winced. “Tell me you weren’t stupid enough to take more money, Matty.”

“Hey, I like being alive, thank you very much. No, this time I’m taking the fall for someone else.” He straightened a little, voice a mixture of bitterness and regret. “Pedro stole himself a little nest egg and hid it on the island somewhere, and the big bosses finally figured out the money was missing. He shifted the blame to me, and because of my stellar track record everyone’s buying it.”

Steve looked even more serious, which was never a good thing. “So if we find the money, will that be enough to make them leave you alone? Or will they need to make an example of you?”

Matt winced, an answer all on its own, and Danny felt a chill sweep through him. “Okay, so we don’t give the money back to them when we find it,” he said firmly, as if he hadn’t just skipped 20 steps of the plan. “We use it to sweeten the deal for the DEA when you turn state’s witness and beg to be let into Witsec.”

Steve nodded. “One of the guys I used to serve with decided the DEA was his version of retirement. I’ll make some calls in the morning.”

Danny stood. “Now, one last question. Are people with guns going to be coming for us tonight, or will it take them a little while to find you?”

“I don’t think they’ve made it back to Hawaii yet. They cut all their ties here when they disappeared last time.” Matt sighed. “But I can’t say for certain.”

Danny rubbed his eyes. “I’ll work with that. A few hours sleep will mean I’m that much better at ducking.” Then he pointed at Matt, expression firm. “You are spending the night on the couch, and if you’re not still here in the morning rest assured I will hunt you down. And this time, I really will shoot you.”

Matt wrestled with himself for a moment, looking guilty, then nodded. “Okay.”

Steve got up as well, rubbing a soothing hand along Danny’s back as he passed. “I’ll get him a blanket.”

Matt watched him go, looking thoughtful. “He didn’t even hesitate when you said I was spending the night here.” He turned back to Danny. “And the eyebrow conversation game between the two of you is better than even yours and Rachel’s used to be.”

There was a question behind those factual statements, the opening to the kind of teasing banter and occasionally serious conversations he used to be able to have with his brother about what was going on with his life. Danny was fiercely tempted to let himself fall into this one, half afraid this would be his only chance, but that was far from the smart thing to do.

“That’s a conversation for the morning, little brother.” Danny’s chest tightened, hoping he would get the chance to have it. “Now get some sleep.”


	3. Chapter 3

They left the bedroom door open. Danny stared at it a moment, as if expecting to have to run back downstairs at the smallest sound. "We should have handcuffed him to something."

He sounded exhausted, on a level far deeper than the physical. Steve closed his hand around Danny's wrist, gently tugging him back toward the bed. "Handcuffs wouldn't fit around the post by the stairs. And if he wanted to leave bad enough, he'd just take the table with him."

"Yeah, but at least it would slow him down a little." Danny let himself be pulled down onto the bed, tugging the blanket back up over them because he insisted Steve never did it right. "As it is, I'm already trying to figure out how to get my hands on a tracking anklet for a few days."

"I'm sure there's a way." Steve snuggled closer, not saying anything about the tension still screaming through Danny's muscles. "If nothing else, Lou might have some contacts."

Danny froze. "There's no chance we can keep the team out of this, is there?"

Steve was silent for a moment, wondering if this was what Danny felt like all those times Steve had trouble letting people take care of him. He needed to remember this, next time he was the one in trouble. "You know," he said finally, voice gentle. "I'm pretty sure that's the stupidest thing I've ever heard you say."

Danny sighed. "I know." He buried his face against Steve's shoulder.  "And it's probably my turn for the highly illegal crisis, isn't it?"

"Probably." He stroked his fingers through Danny's hair. "It was Lou's turn last, when his daughter got kidnapped. I think Chin's next, after you."

"I definitely don't think we should tell him that." He lifted his head, looking down at Steve through the darkness. "You're being awfully calm about this."

"You were awfully calm about following me to Cambodia to dig up an empty grave that supposedly once held someone my mother assassinated." Steve smiled a little. "We just have a different definition of 'for better or worse' than most people."

"We should probably write that into the vows some—" Danny cut himself off at a small sound from downstairs, entire body going tense as if ready to spring out of bed at any moment.

"Sorry!" Matt called from downstairs. "I just knocked something over. Go back to sleep!"

They stayed where they were a moment, frozen, but there was no other sound. Finally, Danny dropped back down against Steve's chest. All the air rushed out of his lungs, like he was finally letting himself breathe. "Damn it, Steve."

"I know." Hating the shakiness in his voice, Steve wrapped his arms around Danny as far as they would go. "I know."

Danny let himself be held, face pressed against Steve's neck. "I can't lose him again," he breathed. "Not like this."

"We won't." Steve made the words a vow. He knew nothing about the situation, wasn't sure he trusted Matt in the slightest, but he'd take on the entire world for Danny if he had to. "We'll figure out how to fix this."

Danny made a pained sound. "Yeah, because I did such a good job at that last time."

"He didn't give you a chance last time." Steve's voice was firm, knowing how much of a trap guilt could be. He wasn't very good at shaking it off himself, but Danny didn't deserve that. "This time, we're making our own."

Danny pulled away just far enough to look down at him again. "I'm glad you're here," he murmured, voice full of that helpless, slightly awed affection that always made Steve feel like the luckiest man alive.  

Steve pulled him close again. He'd follow Danny into hell if he had to. A brother on the run from drug dealers? That was nothing. "I always will be."

They laid there for a moment, just holding each other, before Danny spoke again. "Grace, however, is staying the hell away from all of this."

Steve nodded. "Absolutely."


	4. Chapter 4

Normally, Danny was dramatically opposed to being conscious before dawn, but this time he knew Steve being there was the only reason he’d gotten any sleep at all. As it was, the light was only barely beginning to creep in through the blinds as he stared up at the ceiling, listening with his entire being for any sound coming from downstairs. If he heard Matt moving, he would know his little brother was still there without going downstairs and risking him being gone.

Steve, already up and getting dressed, sat back down on Danny’s half the bed. “You want me to check?” he asked, understanding in every word.

Danny sighed, shaking his head. “Yes, but as I’m not actually 12 anymore I don’t think that’s really an option.” He forced himself up and out of the bed before he could change his mind, knowing he couldn’t even give himself the delaying tactic of getting dressed.

He headed down the stairs, telling himself that it wasn’t the end of the world if Matt wasn’t there. He probably hadn’t left the island yet, and if there’d been a firefight they probably would have—

There he was, sound asleep on the couch.

Danny sat down hard on the step, everything in his chest unknotting at once as he let himself just look at his little brother. His eyes were stinging, a lump forming in his throat, and he had to take a few deep breaths to make sure he didn’t do something stupid like start crying.

A few minutes later, he went the rest of the way downstairs and yanked one of the couch cushions out from under him. Matt crashed to the floor, just like he had when they were teenagers, and as he sputtered awake Danny tossed the cushion back in the space where he’d been. “Rise and shine, princess. We’ve got a busy day trying to make sure no one kills you.”

Matt grabbed the cushion and flung it up at Danny’s head, glaring when he neatly stepped out of the way. “I've never understood how you could squeeze so much rage into such a small space." He stood up, looking over at the blinds with a suddenly suspicious expression. “What time is it?”

“Dawn.” He headed into the kitchen to start the coffee. “If I don’t get to sleep, neither do you.” 

“Okay, maybe I have to give you that one.” Still bleary-eyed, Matt followed him. “If you’re going to shout at me again, though, I’d like to remind you that you’ll wake up your boyfriend.”

“Fiancé,” Danny corrected calmly, attention still on the coffee as he held up the hand with the SEAL ring. “And he’s already awake.”

There was a moment of silence from Matt, and Danny glanced up to find his brother watching him with a mixture of surprise and something that looked almost like grief. Deciding to go for the easier route, he made a 'come at me' gesture. "Come on, let's get the 'wait, my brother is bisexual?' shock and/or terrible jokes out of the way now."

Matt smirked, just like he was supposed to. "Well, I am pretty shocked you actually know what the word 'bisexual' means."

Waiting for the coffee maker to fill, Danny leaned back against the edge of the counter and folded his arms across his chest. "Google is a wonderful thing."

"You've finally decided to spend a little quality time with a computer. I'm so proud of you." Then his expression sobered. "I got over any shock I might have had last night, when I was snooping around the family photos." He made a vague gesture to suggest the various pictures of Danny, Grace and Steve in various combinations displayed throughout the house. His expression softened. "You look happy, bro."

Danny's chest tightened. "I am happy."

"Good." The word came out thicker than Matt probably meant it to, because he cleared his throat and looked away. "How'd dad take it?"

Danny shrugged. "Not really sure. They were in Jersey when Mom told him, and by the time he made it out here she was so focused on asking him for a divorce I didn't think to ask." At Matt's sudden alarmed look, he made a 'settle down' gesture. "It's okay. I fixed it. Set up a redo of their first date, got Dad to start paying more attention to Mom, and they're fine now."

Matt's sudden laugh was a little wild as he rubbed a hand across his mouth. "Of course you fixed it." Then any humor disappeared, and there was only grief. "I missed a hell of a lot, didn't I?"

"Yeah." Danny swallowed the sudden lump in his own throat. "You did."

Matt let out a shaky breath, then squared his shoulders and put on his best "game on" face. Then he smirked. "Guess you found your adventurous spirit, though, huh?"

Danny grinned. "You could say that." When Matt waggled an eyebrow, he pointed a warning finger at his little brother. "Do not challenge me like that. I will go into so much detail that it will _melt your brain_.  You will have images seared into your mind's eye that you will _never_ be able to unsee."

Matt laughed, holding his hands up in supplication. "Okay, okay. I take it back." His expression softened again as he gestured toward the pot. "That enough for three cups yet?"

Danny turned back to check, then grabbed three mugs out of the cupboard. "We only need two." He poured the coffee into his mug and the extra one, putting cream and sugar in his and just cream in Matt's. Then he filled the kettle with water and set it on the stove. "Steve's one of those heathens who prefer plant-water in the morning."

"You do tend to attract the crazies." The statement radiated affection as Matt walked over and picked up his mug. He hesitated before taking the first sip, looking over at his brother. "You remembered," he said quietly, gesturing a little with the mug.

Danny took a drink of his own coffee. "Of course I did."

Matt's fingers tightened on the mug. "I'm sorry." His voice was rough. "For before, for now, for all of it."

Danny just looked at his little brother, all of their years together flashing before his eyes. "I know."


	5. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Through the power of true love's reviews, a fic long sleeping has once again begun to stir.

“You’re telling me you can get me the Colombians' money man.” Even from several thousand miles away, the disbelief was clear in Tim’s voice. “So what, you’re going to pick up Pedro Fuentes on your way to get a six-pack?”

“Not exactly,” Steve leaned against the bedroom wall, keeping an ear open for any shouting from downstairs. There hadn’t been any yet, which he was taking as a good sign. “But we have the guy who works directly under Fuentes, and if you get him into Witsec and give us a little time to pull everything together we’ll have Fuentes ready for you, too.”

“I know you’re a miracle worker, McGarrett, but there’s no way in hell you’re going to be able to pull this off.” Tim’s voice dropped, as if he didn’t want anyone else to overhear. “I know for a fact that the Colombians pulled out of Hawaii a couple of years ago and haven’t been back since, and there’s no way in hell I can make this fly with my bosses if you go outside your—“

“Tim.” Steve kept his own voice quiet as he cut his friend off. “I’ve got this.” He hesitated, not sure how much he could tell him. “It’s a family thing.”

“Family,” Tim repeated, his voice suddenly careful. “There’s another SEAL involved in this?”

Steve leaned his head back against the wall. “I’ve told you about Danny, right?”

“McGarrett, you’ve told everyone you’ve ever _met_ about Williams, but I don’t see how that—“ Tim stopped suddenly, and there was suddenly the faint clatter of keys. Then there was a long, long moment of silence. “Mother _fucker_ ,” Tim breathed.

Thankfully, it looked like no further explanation would be required. “Not the word I would have chosen. I know their mother.”

There was another moment of silence while Tim collected himself. “You really know how to get in the middle of it, don’t you?” he said finally.

“No place else I’d rather be than with him.” It was one of the bedrock certainties of his life. “Besides, I’ve dragged him into worse than this.”

Finally, Tim sighed. “I should have known. Anyone willing to be your partner this long has to be as nuts as you are.” There was the creak of an office chair as he leaned forward. “Let me talk to a few people just to make sure, but if you can get Williams to cooperate I think we can give you everything you’re looking for. Fuentes would be a hell of a bigger fish than we’ve been able to get on our own.”

Steve let out a sigh of relief – Fuentes wouldn’t be a problem, mostly because they had to get him in order to make sure Matt was safe. “One thing, though – if you flip Fuentes, you need to keep him away from Matt.”

Tim made a scoffing noise. “A soft job hasn’t killed all my brain cells, McGarrett. I presume you’re going to use Williams to get Fuentes, which means they won’t be too thrilled with each other. It makes us look bad if our witnesses turn up dead.”

“If it helps at all, the Colombians are going to want Fuentes dead if we do this right. He’ll probably give you whatever you need for a nice, secure prison cell.”

There was another moment of silence, then Tim barked out a laugh. “I’m going to need to come out to Hawaii one of these days just to buy your Danny a beer. Guy’s got to have balls of steel to actually _choose_ to run with you.”

Steve’s lips quirked up. “I’m very familiar with Danny’s balls, thank you.”

Tim groaned. “I walked right into that one, didn’t I?” he said, amused. “Well, I’ll forgive you, because you’re about to help us get a grip on one of the biggest drug operations in the Western hemisphere.”

“That’s a useful side-effect, yes.” He straightened, ready to end the call and head downstairs, when a thought hit him. “I... wouldn’t mention this to the FBI if I were you. Neither Matt or Danny made any friends when Matt evaded them and fled the country a few years ago.”

Tim just chuckled. “Somehow, I’m not surprised.” There was a creak from the chair again. “I’ll make sure they’re kept out of the loop. Now, you go work your magic, and I’ll take care of things from my end.”

Steve couldn’t help feeling relieved as he hung up the phone. Yes, they still had to figure out _their_ half of the plan, not to mention actually pull it off, but they’d done more with less. It had been the government’s half of the equation he hadn’t been entirely sure he could pull off.

That taken care of, he headed downstairs and followed the sound of voices down into the kitchen. Danny and Matt were sitting at the kitchen table, arguing good-naturedly about the most important food to take to a desert island. Relief still lit Danny’s face, a constant, unspoken layer of worry gone for a moment, and Steve leaned back against the counter and let himself just watch the man he loved.

It wasn’t long, though, before Danny caught his eye and gestured to the mug sitting over on the counter. “I made your plant water for you, babe. I knew you were almost done upstairs when I heard you stop moving around.”

“Thank you.” Steve took a long sip, not at all surprised to find it was just the way he liked it. “Smart, not letting him in the back yard. A sniper could get good sight lines from a boat.”

“The fact that that occurred to me is a clear sign I’ve known you too long.” Danny sighed, but he was smiling as he said it. “Next I’m going to go window shopping for grenades.”

“I could get you a basket of them for Valentine’s Day, if you wanted,” Steve teased, grinning. “Nice bow made out of det cord.”

“You’re not playing for the crowd, are you?” Matt asked in astonishment, looking back and forth between them. “You’re really this disgustingly cute with each other _all the time_.”

“It’s a burden.” Danny waved to the chair. “Come sit down, torture your future brother-in-law a little, and then we’ll get started on whatever cunning plan I know you’re already cooking up.”  

Steve sat down, stretching his leg out to hook it around Danny’s underneath the table. “Not going to ask me how the call went?”

“I already know how the call went – you walked in wearing your ‘my plan is going swimmingly face.’” Danny rubbed his foot along Steve’s leg. “Besides, I trust you.”

Steve grinned at him, touched, and Matt groaned. “I don’t have to wait for Fuentes to kill me. You two will put me in a diabetic coma long before he can find me.”

Danny shoved at his brother with his other foot, making Matt laugh. 


	6. Chapter 6

“So.” Lou stepped back, giving Matt a look that Danny suspected he’d previously saved for particularly incompetent criminals and teenage boys who’d tried to date his daughter. “This is the brother.”

“This is the brother.” Matt smoothed the non-existent wrinkles out of his borrowed shirt, but didn’t offer his hand to Lou. He’d tried that with Kono, who’d gripped his hand tightly enough that Matt’s knees had buckled. “Who is a thoughtless, irredeemable asshole who doesn’t deserve a brother as good as Danny and is very, very sorry for ever causing him any kind of psychological distress.” He glanced at Chin, then immediately shied away from the 1,000 yard stare he was rocking. Unless Danny had missed one, that was the third time it had happened in as many minutes. “So do I get to live?”

Lou, Chin and Kono shot each other the same kind of coolly evaluating looks Danny had seen mobsters use. Then they looked back at Danny. “Depends on if you screw up again,” Kono said, her expression only a step shy of her murder face.

It was touching enough that Danny was seriously considering tearing up a little.

Matt shot her a wary look, still tense. Steve, who’d been standing next to Danny with a delighted smirk, moved close enough to clap Matt on the shoulder. “Looks like we don’t get to kill you yet,” he said brightly. “Now, maybe we should all sit down and start trying to figure out ways to save your life.”

That, apparently, was the signal to relax, and the rest of the team dropped their “tough kids” looks and headed to snag their favorite seats. Matt stayed behind another second, his shoulders easing far more slowly. “You have some protective friends,” he murmured, leaning close to Danny’s ear.

Danny grinned, guiding Matt to one of the chairs. “What can I say? Families are like that.”  

When they were all seated, however, everyone immediately got down to business. Chin pulled out his tablet, pulling up the files he’d apparently already found. “The two people most likely to come after Matt are Pedro Fuentes and this man.” He showed them the security still he’d pulled up. “Marco Reyes. It seems he recently took over operations in the area, and rumor has it that he’s taken a personal interest in the missing money. He’s not likely to let Fuentes handle this alone.”

Matt had grown paler and paler the entire time Chin was talking. “Shit,” he breathed, eyes wide with panic. “Shit shit shit.” He stood, looking frantic. “I have to go. I—“

Danny grabbed his arm, feeling the frustration surge up as he dragged Matt back down to the couch. “You’re not going anywhere, as I have explained to you _multiple_ times.”

“I _can’t be here_ when Reyes shows up!” Matt grabbed Danny’s shirt, shaking him a little. “He kills people. _Lots_ of people, and that’s even taking the standards of your average cartel member into account. He pretends he’s a gentleman, but all that means is that he tortures you slowly and in private in a dark room where nobody can see you.” His eyes were wild. “He can’t find you. He can’t find _any_ of you.” He tried standing up again, yanking back from where Danny was holding onto his arms. “I have to _go_!”

Danny tightened his grip, the pressure in his chest making his heart ache. “Matt, Matty. I need you to _listen_.” His voice was rough as he reassured his brother, memories of doing the same thing through years of skinned knees and nightmares rising up inside him. “We can handle this. I have faced scarier assholes than this Reyes guy, and so has everyone else here who isn’t you. We’ll be fine, but you won’t be if you run off.” The specter of old terror, the nightmares that had chased Danny in the years since Matt had run off, was a spear of cold inside him. “And if you’re not, it’s going to be a thousand times worse for me than if Reyes has me tied up somewhere, okay? I’m not losing you.”

“And we’re not losing him,” Steve added quietly, his voice carrying the same kind of bedrock certainty you normally saw in mountains. “We’re not losing any of us. I’ll storm any gate I need to in order to get one of my team back, and for Danny I won’t hesitate to burn down cities.” He laid a steadying hand against Matt’s back. “You don’t have to worry about us, Matt. Don’t make us worry about you.”

Matt stayed tense for a long moment, still poised to run, then the fight went out of him in a rush. He collapsed forward, forehead coming to rest against Danny’s, and he let out a shaky breath. “Okay,” Matt whispered, his eyes wet. “Okay. But if there’s any stupid shit to do, _please_ promise me you’ll let me do it. None of you deserve this.”

Throat tight, Danny pulled Matt into a hug. “I can’t do that,” he managed, voice cracking a little as he tightened his arms around his little brother. “Steve _loves_ doing stupid shit, and if I could figure out a way to stop him I would have done it a long time ago.”

“Hey,” Steve argued lightly, still rubbing soothing circles into Matt’s back. “I’m getting better at it.”

“Yes, you are,” Danny admitted, forcing his arms to relax when Matt started to pull back. “I’m very proud of you.”

“We, on the other hand, are all very sensible,” Lou said, expression more sympathetic than it had been. “I don’t like bullets at all.”

“I’m sensible.” Chin countered, his own voice gentle. He pointed over at Kono. “She’s a danger-crazy idiot like McGarrett.”

“It’s true,” she said easily. “I need to get into at least one ridiculously dangerous situation a week to feel truly fulfilled.”

“See?” Danny squeezed Matt’s shoulder, touched by the easy support that surrounded him. He’d ride into Hell for these people, and had, but it always surprised him a little each and every time they did the same for him. “We do stuff like this all the time, and this time it’ll even be semi-legal. But you’ve got to work with us, not against us.”

Matt nodded, swiping at his wet cheeks. “Okay.” He let out another breath, nodding. “Tell me what you need me to do.”

“At the moment, I have no idea.” Danny looked over at Steve. “But you clearly had one cooking up, earlier. Want to give us some idea of the no-doubt terrifying inner workings of your brain?”

Steve’s brow lowered in thought. “With Reyes in the picture, we’ll have to modify it a little,” he said after a moment. “But yeah. I have an idea.”


	7. Chapter 7

The plan was, admittedly, only sketched out – he wouldn’t have sent them out into the field with something this sketchy, especially given the big hole it had right at the beginning. But if there was anyone he could trust to turn his idea into something better, it was his team.

Steve leaned forward. “The only way we can clear Matt’s name with the cartel is if Fuentes gets found picking up the money himself. “Specifically, if we convince him that he needs to _move_ the money because Reyes suspects that he’s the one who took it. Then we make sure Reyes catches him with his hand in the cookie jar, but swoop in and pick Fuentes up before he can do anything about it.”

“Some magic trick,” Lou said, his voice dry. “Any idea how we’re gonna pull any of that off?”

“We find Fuentes’s money, then contact him and tell him that we found the money and we’ll turn him into Reyes if we don’t get a cut of it.” Steve felt Danny go tense next to him, automatically hesitating long enough to let him interject an argument. When he didn’t, Steve continued. “If he comes and tries to move the money, we’ll have it under surveillance. If he tries to tell Reyes this is just proof Matt stole it, we find or make a paper trail that connects Fuentes to the hiding spot.”

Kono raised an eyebrow. “’Make?’”

Steve spread his hands out in acknowledgement. This was hardly the first time they’d played fast-and-loose with the law in the name of ohana, but it should only be used as a last resort. “It would be preferable if we could find it.”

Matt listened to all of this, his expression serious. “Reyes has a good eye for forged documents – he uses enough of them day-to-day,” he said finally. “But I don’t think they think I’m smart enough to set-up Fuentes like that. I’ve tried to keep my head down.”

“They might still assume we’re helping with the set-up,” Chin interjected. “5-0 has a good enough, and wild enough, reputation.”

“Then we do a two-pronged attack,” Danny cut in, sounding a hell of a lot calmer than Steve had expected. When you knew Danny well enough, you realized that the calm was considerably more worrying than a rant would have been. “Matt goes to Fuentes with the blackmail offer, says he’s found the money and will give part of it back if he gets the cartel off his back.” He met his younger brother’s eyes, receiving a small nod in return. “Matt wears a wire, and at least one of you is there to shoot Fuentes’ ass if he tries anything.”

Lou turned to Danny, looking suspicious. “If someone else is going to be watching Matt’s back, where will you be?”

Steve, however, had known the second half of Danny’s plan since the moment he’d said “at least one of you.” “No.” There was exactly one reason why Danny wouldn’t be watching Matt’s back, and that was if he was planning on being one of the people in danger. “Absolutely not.”

“You know this is the smartest play,” Danny countered, only now hearing up for an argument. “You had a good plan – I’m just making it better.”

“I second your fiancé,” Matt cut in, leaning toward his brother. “This is a terrible idea that you should definitely not be doing.”

“It’s too dangerous, Danny,” Kono added, looking worried as the realization hit her as well. “And this is _me_ saying that. We won’t be able to set up the situation and make sure you have cover.”

Danny, unfortunately, didn’t seem nearly as dissuaded by that fact as he should have been.  “You all know I’m the most convincing person to talk to Reyes.” His gaze swept over everyone before focusing on Steve, who knew full well that he was the real target of the explanation. “I say Matty contacted me, told me he was in danger, and I catch Reyes as soon as he enters Hawaii and tell him I’ll help him find the money if he doesn’t hurt my brother.” He stopped, like an unpleasant thought had just occurred to him. “Hell, there’s a chance he’ll contact me directly, either to demand the money or just for a nice little round of intimidation.”

Chin, who’d been sitting silently listening to everything, looked even more serious than before. “Danny’s right,” he said finally, his tone making it clear how unhappy he was with what he was saying. “And like he said, we all know it.”

Steve did. But that didn’t mean he had to be happy about it. Danny, noticing this, kept his voice gentle as he squeezed Steve’s leg. “And don’t even try to offer to do it for me. It would make a hell of a lot less sense—“ Steve opened his mouth, ready to argue, but Danny talked over the top of him “—yes, even though we’re engaged, and more importantly putting you in the spotlight would throw suspicion on the whole team.”

It took Steve a moment, but they both knew there was no argument left to make. Finally, he let out a breath. “Do not do _anything_ stupid, you understand me?” he ordered, covering Danny’s hand with his own. “You have to be as unlike me as humanly possible.”

Danny’s lips curved upward a little. “I feel like I should be recording this for posterity.”

He couldn’t joke about this. There were very few things in the world he hated more than the man he loved going into danger alone. “Danny....”

Danny’s expression softened. “I’ll be careful,” he said quietly, voice utterly serious as he gave Steve a quick kiss. “I promise.”

“No one will be meeting anybody until we find that money,” Kono cut in, giving Danny her best “don’t mess with me” look. “I don’t care if you outrank me, that’s an order.”

Now Steve could smile a little. “I second that.”

Chin did as well. “And I third it.”

Lou nodded. “Sounds like we have a consensus,” he said, turning to Matt. “Any ideas on where Fuentes stashed the money he says you stole?”

“I do have a few, actually.” Matt hesitated, then pulled a thumb drive out of his pocket. “Fuentes doesn’t officially own any property here, but he still has a few ‘friends’ here that he buys gifts for. Since he doesn’t do that for anyone else he’s not currently sleeping with, I’m pretty sure he uses them as stash houses.” He turned to Steve, looking faintly sheepish again. “I came hoping you could lend me a computer, and maybe run interference with me while I trespassed in a few places.”

“We’ll do more than that,” Chin said, picking up his tablet to start looking. “but we’ll have to investigate without alerting the owners as to what we’re doing. We don’t want them getting word to Fuentes.”  

Steve looked at Danny, waiting for his partner’s nod before turning to the rest of the team. “We’d better get started, then.”


	8. Chapter 8

After that, it was pretty much just typing.

Yes, okay, fine. Danny was aware that computer research, particularly the special 5-0 version that was only mostly legal, was a hell of a lot more complicated than just typing. He had a deep respect for Chin and even Jerry’s ability to stare down a piece of technology and make it spit out the information they needed. And right now, especially given the fact that Chin was bent over his tablet with Matt purely as a favor to Danny, he was also deeply grateful.

But it wasn’t something he could help with at all, and when Danny felt helpless he inevitably defaulted to sarcasm. His and Steve’s jobs were to wait until the information fairy spit out a potential lead, then go full cop on it. Kono and Lou had already come to the same conclusion, heading back to their respective houses after getting a promise that they’d be called the second anything came up.

But, as this _was_ Danny’s house, going home wasn’t really an option for him. Grace was still at Rachel’s until Monday – he still didn’t know whether it would be better to ask Rachel to keep her an extra week or find someplace else to stash Matt, but even if he had he wasn’t at all prepared to handle another conversation with Steve was off somewhere, no doubt calling other former secret operations buddies, and the idea of trying to go into work and finish up paperwork sounded like a surefire way to drive himself crazy. Which, at the moment, left pretty much only one thing to do.

Cook.

He could do sandwiches for lunch, and at the same time start a new batch of spaghetti sauce that should be ready around time for dinner. If people weren’t trying to shoot at them by then, he’d have enough to feed whoever was in the house and possibly some to send along with Matt if they had to stash him somewhere.

He got out the stockpot, pouring in the olive oil before turning on the heat. Then he got the onions and garlic out of the fridge and started chopping, the rhythm distracting enough he didn’t have to think about anything else for a minute.

At least, he didn’t until Steve walked into the kitchen, his phone in his hand and a too-solemn expression on his face. “What is it?”

Steve hesitated. “It’s only sort of bad, but you should still put down the knife.”

Danny did so, his stomach knotting up. “I love you, but I don’t trust your definition of ‘sort of bad.’”

Steve sighed, sticking the phone back in his pocket. “Your mom called,” he said quietly. “I told her you had the flu again, but if you don’t call in a day or two I’m sure she’ll call back.”

“Shit.” Danny closed his eyes, opening them again only when Steve started moving the already chopped vegetables into the oil. He’d seen Danny make it so many times he knew what to do almost as well as Danny did. “What in the hell am I going to tell her?”

“I’d make Matt do it,” Steve said. “That way, he’ll have to do all the explaining.”

The idea made the knot in Danny’s stomach loosen a little bit. “And, since he’s her favorite, she’s more likely to believe him when he says she can’t tell anyone else.” He started chopping again, pushing them to the other side of the cutting board so Steve could keep moving them over. “We also have to figure out what to do about Grace, by the way. A part of me says she’s safer at Rachel’s house, but us giving up time with her for some ‘mysterious case’ we can’t tell her anything about will be a big red flag something’s wrong. Also, if trouble happens, we’ll be able to protect her better than Rachel and Stan could.” He looked over at Steve. “But there’s another part of me that says she should always be at least a hundred miles away from any kind of potential gunfire. And, if we did let her come home, we’d have to get Matt to a safe house.”

Steve nods. “I’ll find one.” Then he hesitated again. “If we don’t manage to find the money….”

The knot tightened up again. “Then I’ll bluff,” Danny said, trying to keep his voice easy as he dropped the rest of the vegetables in the pan himself. “I should probably start coming up with a backstory now, just in—“

“Danny.” It was the faint edge he could hear in Steve’s voice that made Danny stop talking, turning around to look at him. “What I was going to say is that, if we can’t find the money, I can probably scrape enough together for us to fake it.”

Danny froze. “No more grand larceny,” he said firmly, his chest going weirdly tight. “Not for this. I love Matt, but Grace needs _both_ of us safely out of jail.”

“I didn’t mean I was going to steal it.” Steve’s voice gentled as he laid a hand on both Danny’s shoulders. “I keep trying to tell you, I’ve got Dad’s money and years of back pay saved up. It’d take me a bit to pull it all together, but if we add in a fake paper trail it might be enough to fool the Columbians. It won’t fool the DEA, but if we give them Fuentes and maybe even Reyes they won’t need the money.”

Danny blinked, trying to process what Steve was saying. He’d mentioned having savings a couple of times, mostly in relation to things like Grace’s college fund, but “enough money to fool a cartel” was something else entirely.

Still, it wasn’t as if it was just lying around, no matter how Steve put it. He’d blow through his entire nest egg. “I can’t let you do that,” Danny managed finally, the tightness crawling up into his throat. “There’s a chance you wouldn’t get it back.”

“It doesn’t matter,” Steve said quietly, utterly sincere. “And, if it comes down to that, you _have_ to let me do it. You know damn well I’d do the exact same thing for anyone on the team.” His voice got a little rough. “And it’s a hell of a lot more important that I do it for you if you need it.”

Danny’s own throat felt scratchy. “Damn it,” he breathed, pulling Steve close for a quick, intense kiss. When they pulled away, he let out a breath. “All right, fine. But hopefully, it won’t come to that.”

“It probably won’t.” Steve squeezed his shoulder, pressing another kiss to Danny’s cheek before heading to the cupboard and pulling out the canned tomatoes and spice jars. “We’ve got the best team in the world on the case.”


	9. Chapter 9

The rest of the team narrowed down the possible hiding places for Fuentes' stolen money to the three most likely options, explaining their reasoning for each one. Steve listened like it was a mission debrief, mentally breaking down all three locations for the most efficient entry and exit possible. The hotel would take more research, both to narrow down the money’s possible location and to determine who on the staff was dirty. The bank was best handled via subterfuge, which meant that Danny should take lead on that operation. The house, however....

“How quickly can we get our hands on a ground-penetrating radar?” he asked.

Matt was clearly startled by the interjection, but no one else was. “Malia has a friend who works at the university,” said Chin. “She has one she’ll let us borrow, if I can promise her we’ll give it back in one piece.”

“You said that the house is empty at the moment, which means that the security system probably doesn’t include armed guards.” He smiled a little. “Your friend will get her radar back undamaged.”

“I better also get _you_ back undamaged,” Danny cut in, watching Steve with an expression that suggested he was waiting for the right moment to argue. “Should I run interference with the HPD, keep you from being arrested for breaking-and-entering?”

Steve shook his head. “The money won’t be in the house. Joseph technically owns the place, and Fuentes wouldn’t want to risk him stumbling across it or changing the security codes to keep him out.”

“So it’s in the backyard,” Kono finished, nodding. “Still, if he buried it before the place was landscaped, it could be anywhere.”

Matt shook his head. “If you ever plan on going back to get the money, there are certain things you look for. He’s the one who paid for the landscaping, and he’d want to make it as easy on himself as possible.” He took a deep breath, looking over at Steve. “I’m going with you.”  

Lou looked back and forth between the two of them. “Shouldn’t someone else who knows how to shoot a gun _also_ go with you?”

“I—“ Matt started, looking mildly offended.

He was cut off by a glare and a warning finger from Danny. “I don’t care what skills you’ve picked up at criminal boot camp. The only time you’re allowed to carry a gun is if the rest of us are in such deep shit there’s no other option.” Then he turned to Steve with a wry look that didn’t quite hide the relief underneath. “Besides, Steve’s not planning on getting the attention of anybody with guns. Middle of the night, special ops your way through the backyard jungle and then ninjaSEAL your way over the back wall?”

Steve grinned. “Pretty much. There’ll be cameras, but I can cover those or move them out of the way. All Matt has to do is make sure he doesn’t fall and break something.”

Kono looked amused as she clapped Matt on the shoulder. “Hope you’re good at climbing.”

Matt sighed.

000

Steve had more than enough black clothes to outfit both him and Matt, though Matt had to roll up the sleeves and endure some snickering from Danny about the fit. Steve went to the university alone to pick up the radar, get a brief lesson on how to use it and promise the professor one more time that it would be returned in perfect working order. He brought it back, gave Matt the same lesson he just got, and once night fell they were on their way to the house.

Steve, his gloves already on, parked the truck along a section of road that would be a straight shot through the forest to the rear of the house. Since this was the part of the island where the inhabitants displayed their money by pretending they didn’t have neighbors, it was also far enough away from anything that he didn’t have to worry about hiding the truck more than that. Matt followed him out, pulling on his own gloves and watching with a worried expression as he pulled the folded-up radar unit out of the back of the truck. “So,” he asked hesitantly, “I carry the front end, you carry the back end?”

Steve shot him an amused look as he used the straps he kept in the back to fashion a rough carrier for the radar and hauled it onto his back. “Stay behind me, step where I step, and be quiet when I give you the signal, okay?”

Matt nodded, looking like he was bracing himself. “You don’t even have a flashlight, do you?”

“Too obvious. Besides, I don’t need one.” He pulled the night vision goggles out of his pocket, putting them on. “Stay close.”

The walk through the forest was relatively smooth sailing, with Matt following instructions well for someone who clearly considered nature foreign territory. When they got within sight of the house, Steve signaled Matt to stay where he was. Taking off the straps that held the radar, he handed the entire thing over. “Get to the base of the wall and make sure nothing happens to this,” he whispered. “When I’m sure everything’s clear, I’ll come back for you.”

Matt nodded, watching Steve like he was trying to figure something out. “I thought Danny was exaggerating, but you really were some kind of special ops guy, weren’t you? You are _way_ too comfortable skulking around in a dark jungle not to have done this for a living.”

Steve felt like this was leading somewhere, but wasn’t sure where. “I went over to reserve when I joined 5-0.”

“I bet your bosses weren’t happy about that.” He couldn’t see the nuances in Matt’s expression, but his “I’m figuring things out” voice was surprisingly similar to Danny’s. “You look like you were the kind of guy whose service records involve a lot of black marker and ‘classified’ stamps.”

Wherever this was going, Steve was suddenly sure he wouldn’t like it. “Which means you know what I can do to you if you double-cross Danny again,” he shot back, turning his back on Matt and heading for the wall. The rope and hook in his pocket was enough to get him to the top of the wall, where he carefully avoided the spikes and covered the two moving security cameras. When he got back into position, Matt was waiting with the scanner held up for Steve to grab. He did, hauling it onto his own back again before helping Matt get over the wall.

He didn’t drop Matt, though he briefly thought about it, then jumped down after him. They unfolded the radar, and Steve kept an eye on the house while Matt made a sweep of different areas in the backyard. Steve didn’t question the choice of locations – he had no idea where he would hide money, and there’d be no point in lying about finding the money because he wouldn’t have an opportunity to come back and get it.

Finally, Matt stopped and kicked a flowerbed. Deciding that meant he hadn’t found anything, Steve helped him fold the radar back up and slung it onto his back. Then he helped Matt over the wall, uncovered the security cameras, and climbed back down himself.

Once they made it back into the woods, Matt stopped him with a hand on his arm. “Listen, I didn’t mean—“ He stopped, like he was choosing his words. “My brother’s pretty much the opposite of what you’d think an intense military type would want. He’s loud, chaotic, and only listens to rules if they’re something he wants to do anyway.” He hesitated again. “He’s already had someone he loved get tired of him. He can’t handle it twice.”

The tension that had been in Steve’s chest disappeared instantly. He couldn’t be mad at _anybody_ who was trying to be protective of Danny. “I retired from the SEALs so they couldn’t take me away from Danny,” he said quietly. “In a way, he’s the reason I stayed in Hawaii in the first place. I will always, _always_ make the choice that gets me more Danny. Nothing will change that.”

Matt nodded, letting go of Steve. “Good,” he said quietly. “Not enough people choose Danny. Me included.”

Steve clapped a hand on his shoulder. “You’re trying to make up for it now.”

The walk back to the truck was surprisingly pleasant.

**Author's Note:**

> Come check out my weekly posts and original short fiction on my [blog](http://jennifferwardell.blogspot.com) or say hi to me on [Tumblr](http://sanctuaryforalluniverses.tumblr.com)!


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